


home's a narrow space to find

by catmittens



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bathtime bonding, Fluff, Gen, Light Angst, allura is a nice person, mentions of the Holt family, you can read it as shippy or just friendship w/e floats your boat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-21
Updated: 2016-08-21
Packaged: 2018-08-10 06:02:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7833112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catmittens/pseuds/catmittens
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Pidge is incredibly awkward and Allura just wants to spend some quality time together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	home's a narrow space to find

**Author's Note:**

> This was born purely from my desire for bonding feels between the Voltron girls. What better way to bond with someone than sitting naked with them in a tub! *sweats*

“Pidge! There you are!”  
  
The young pilot in question turned to see Princess Allura making a beeline for her in the hallway. Curiously, she wore a relaxed, easy smile, and her eyes were bright. She looked like she was excited about something. Whatever it was, Pidge thought it easier to play along.  
  
“Um, what is it, Allura?” she asked.

Allura leaned forward slightly and said, “I was just wondering if you had bathed yet.”

Huh.

Ten seconds passed.

Then twenty.

The princess waited for Pidge’s reply, blinking her blue-green eyes a couple of times. Pidge started to say something, but a nervous giggle slipped out instead. Clearing her throat, she tried again. “Uh, nope. I-I was actually just going to skip it and go to bed.” It was true. Training had drained not just her own energy, but had exhausted the other paladins as well. Hunk had actually tried to sleep on the floor before Shiro and Lance dragged him to his room. Any hygienic issues could be taken care of in the morning.

Of course, there was always the possibility that Allura could actually smell her from down the hall. Maybe that explained the sudden inquiry.

What ended up coming out of Allura’s mouth a moment later, though, was a bit stranger than what Pidge expected. “I understand that you’re tired, but how about you come with me and we can take a bath together!”

Aaaand here came another pause. Pidge was aware of how painfully impolite she was being, but this just seemed like the least embarrassing way to comprehend this request. Better than turning bright red and curling up into a ball.

She definitely wasn’t disgusted or shocked. She was open-minded enough to understand that an alien princess from a civilization over 10,000 years old would do some things differently. Just your run-of-the-mill cultural differences. On the other hand, Pidge hadn’t thought about the possibility of _participating_ in one of these differences.

Mainly to give herself some peace of mind and to satisfy some curiosity, Pidge asked, “So it’s not inappropriate or anything? I mean, you’re, um, royalty, and I’m like…” the short teen fumbled for the right word. I’m, like, an employee or something.”

Allura laughed good-naturedly, her manner resembling how she had tried earlier to coax Pidge into revealing her true gender. It was a far cry from her normally commanding attitude and regal bearing. “There’s nothing inappropriate about it since we’re both female. Back on Altea, men and women didn’t usually bathe together, but it was common to do it with family or close friends.” 

Allura wore a soft expression as she continued to explain. “I often bathed with my mother and the women who attended me. Are there not cultures on Earth who do that?”

“Oh, there are,” Pidge replied. “It’s just that… where I’m from, that sort of thing isn’t as popular.” Seeing the princess begin to frown in slight disappointment, Pidge found herself hastily adding “But I don’t think it’s bad or anything! I guess that I’m still getting used to everyone knowing I’m not a boy. I-I mean, I don’t want you to think that you should give me any special treatment now that it’s all out there ‘cause, uh… you know…”

Pidge managed to stop her rambling and fidgeted with her glasses instead. Allura had watched her calmly until the green paladin quieted down and clucked her tongue chidingly, something that reminded Pidge of her mother.

“Pidge, that isn’t what this is about at all. I want us to do this together because I want you to know that you can feel comfortable with me, and that you’re not just an ‘employee.’ It’s important that we all find ways to support each other.” Her tone became firm as she said, “and really now, do you honestly think that after all of the effort you and the others have put forth and all of the danger you’ve all been through that I would feel the need to give any of you special treatment?”

As much as Pidge knew what the correct answer to that question was, she couldn’t help but feel tongue-tied. It was true that it was silly to think that everyone - especially Hunk and Lance – would act that differently around her just because she was a girl. For God’s sake, Lance had been the only one completely in the dark. Another part of her silence was fresh embarrassment about reading that much into a bath. Now she probably just looked like a prude. Lovely.

When she finally got her voice back – all these awkward silences were getting to be a bit much – she said “I know that you wouldn’t do that. Sorry for getting so worked up. And… as long as you don’t mind my sweat, I’d like to take you up on your offer.” She forced herself to look at Allura instead of her shoes, hoping that she wasn’t blushing (She probably was).

The princess clasped her slim hands together in a pleased way. “Wonderful! I think you’ll enjoy it more than your own tub. The one I use is much bigger, so we’ll both have plenty of room.”

As Pidge followed Allura, the shorter girl thought about how the bathrooms connected to each paladin’s sleeping quarters were actually quite decent. In her own bathroom, at least, she had been able to find basic grooming supplies that, even though they weren’t exactly like what they used on Earth (it took her some time to the gunk Alteans used to clean their teeth), they worked just fine. In the end, it didn’t feel that different from living at the Garrison.

When the two of them were standing at the entrance to Allura’s bedroom, she opened the door and gestured for Pidge to come with her. Pidge followed, her eyes widening as she took in the sight of the spacious quarters.

When she was ushered into the bathroom, she was once again impressed by the tub that was indeed huge and flanked by a low table holding a number of simple-looking bottles and a short stack of towels. Apparently it did pay to be the princess, even when there was no one to rule over.

“This is… really nice,” Pidge murmured. Allura simply smiled in reply and began to fill the bathtub with hot water. When that was finished, Allura removed the tiara from her forehead, shook out her pale hair, and began to undress without reservations. Pidge’s mind stuttered slightly, so she shook her head in an attempt to get it back on track. 

_Like she said, this is all about support, so just act natural!_ She thought to herself, and swiftly pulled off her own clothes.

The first thing Pidge thought when she caught a glimpse of her superior’s nude body was that it was like looking at a beautiful statue, what with Allura’s brown, smooth skin and long, graceful legs. It was interesting that without her flowing dress, she looked far less delicate. Pidge could now see that despite her slenderness, she was also muscular enough to suggest that she knew her way around a fight. In other words, she was more like a tall tree than a flower.

Pidge’s little reverie was interrupted when Allura turned her head to look at her. In a fit of self-consciousness, she crossed her own skinny arms over her chest. Allura rolled her eyes playfully and chuckled. “My dear paladin, I promise that there’s no need to try and preserve your modesty in this situation. If it will make you more comfortable, we can get in at the same time, all right?”

She gestured for Pidge to stand next to her. As Pidge uncrossed her arms, she felt herself being patted on the shoulder, a bit like how one would try to soothe a spooked pet. _Just go with the flow_ , she mentally noted, and they both sank into the water.

Allura, now submerged up to her chin, sighed contentedly, while Pidge took off her glasses and set them on the low table.

Sitting there in the tub, Pidge allowed her limbs to go limp. Piloting her lion definitely took its toll on her muscles, and despite her feelings of vulnerability in this situation, she would be lying if she said that this didn’t feel great right now.

Just as her eyelids began to droop, she saw Allura reach out and grab one of the bottles sitting on the table. She guessed it was some kind of soap. Allura proceeded to squirt a thick, white substance into her hand. Pidge presumed she was going to wash up, which wasn’t surprising, since that was normally the point of bathing.

What she didn’t quite expect was for Allura to once again motion for her to come closer. “Come here, I’ll wash your hair for you,” she stated casually. Like it was just something that they did all the time.

Luckily, Pidge prevented her brain from short-circuiting again. So far, this had already been the closest she had gotten to a person of either gender, and by her calculations, having her hair washed would require them to be even closer.

Pidge supposed she should have felt more uncomfortable thinking about that, but the more she did, the more she realized that it was pointless to feel that way. None of this felt dirty, just unfamiliar. Allura was still sitting next to her placidly, completely willing to do something nice for her for no other reason than wanting to show that she cared.

One last time, Pidge reminded herself to _go with the flow_ , and scooted around until she was seated with her back to Allura. “Sure, Princess. Thanks.” Immediately, she felt Allura beginning to rub her scalp with her shampoo-filled hands.

“Is it itchy anywhere?” she asked. Pidge admitted that yes, it itched a bit on top of her head. Allura then began to scratch lightly where Pidge told her. After a few minutes of this she went on to run her fingers through Pidge’s short hair to untangle it and work the shampoo all the way through.

Having this done made Pidge feel like a little kid again, but not in a bad way. More than anything, it made her feel nostalgic, and if she closed her eyes she could imagine her mom doing this instead of the princess. She could even imagine hearing her dad’s voice coming from the living room as he told Matt about his latest mission.

_Mom_.

_Dad_.

_Matt_.

The sudden stinging sensation at the corners of her eyes jolted her back to the present. Pidge banished the images of her family before any actual tears could start falling. Instead, she chose to zone out while Allura continued washing. The young woman was humming a song under her breath. Pidge listened. It wasn’t a song she knew.

Allura finished scrubbing by saying that it was time to rinse off, so Pidge shut her eyes again as a basin of fresh water was poured gently over her head. That happened a few more times until she heard Allura say that she was done.

Pidge turned around so that they were face-to-face. “Thanks again. Um, I could… wash your hair if you want, Princess…”

“I really appreciate that, but I’ll wash it myself.” Allura pushed it away from her face. “My hair is so temperamental that I’m the only one who can really handle it.” Pidge laughed in reply and left her to it, but not before she was handed another bottle. Body wash, apparently. “I’ve noticed that you and the boys are starting to… slack off, I suppose, in this area. Well, except Lance.”

Pleased to have a topic of conversation, Pidge rolled with it. “You know, when we were at the Garrison, Lance would write to his family and beg them to send him more of his weird beauty products whenever he ran out. When he got them, there would always be all these boxes full to bursting. It happened way too often to feel normal.” This reveal had Allura giggling to the point where she almost _snorted_. Pidge was amazed to see a side to this strong woman that was so carefree, at least for tonight.

As they finished washing and rinsing themselves, Pidge decided to get something else off her chest. “You know, at first I was afraid this would be really awkward and I would end up looking dumb, but I’m glad we did this.” She looked down at her wobbly reflection in the bathwater and smiled, feeling shy again. “It was nice, you know?”

Allura grinned back. “I was hoping you would think so. I’ve learned enough about Earthlings to understand that, male or female, you’re not all that different from each other, but I especially wanted you to know that if you ever need to talk to me about certain things, I’m always here, just like I said before.” Allura paused and looked down at her own reflection. “I certainly felt that way sometimes when I was younger. I still do, with everything the way it is now.”

They became quiet for a short time, thinking about the ones who weren’t with them anymore, and the ones that they wanted to find.

As the tub was being drained, Pidge asked, “So you said that on Altea, bathing wasn’t much of a mixed-gender thing, right? Does that make this more of a “girls’ night” kind of deal?”

Allura looked slightly taken aback by Pidge’s wording, but her lips quirked up anyway. “…I’m not planning on taking a bath with the other paladins if that’s what you’re asking.” She handed the teen girl one of the towels from the folded stack. Pidge accepted it and began to dry her hair once they were out of the tub. Allura did the same with her own towel and wrapped it around herself.

Well, bath time was over. All that was left now was to put her clothes on and go to her room to sleep. By now, just thinking about her bed, as bare-bones as it was, made her yawn and sway on her feet. Allura noticed and handed the brunette her glasses and clothes.

“Make sure you get plenty of rest tonight, okay? There are going to be more team exercises tomorrow, so you’ll want to be alert.”

“Team exercises… got it,” Pidge mumbled while putting her glasses back on. Then she hesitated a moment before clearing her throat. The atmosphere wasn’t bad right now, and she was trying her best to be more “open” with others, so this was as good a time as any to say something.

“Um, seriously though… Thank you. I wouldn’t mind if you, like, wanted to do this again.”

Pidge watched Allura’s eyes sparkle in surprised delight as she nodded. Instead of it looking off-putting or weird, it was actually kind of touching. Then again, this was someone whose friends were long gone, and had been for thousands of years. Introvert though she was, even Pidge probably would have been ecstatic to find someone who had at least one thing in common with her after that long.

In the end, after bidding Allura goodnight, Pidge decided to just carry her clothes and keep her towel wrapped around her. She knew that everyone else was already asleep anyway.

Pressing her palm to the scanner, the doors to her room slid open. Her sweaty shirt and shorts were unceremoniously tossed into a corner, and her shoes were placed near the entrance.

By now, Pidge was basically sleepwalking as she folded the towel and pulled on her pajamas. _I guess this is just how things are going to be for now_. She had had thoughts like this plenty of times since she had been named a paladin. Strangely, they no longer weighed her down like they did at first. After tonight, it was more like they grounded her, reminding her to focus.

Another part of her whispered coldly about how the routine prevented her from having to think about her imprisoned father and brother. Her stomach twisted, but she ignored it forcefully. Pidge turned off the light and flopped onto her bed. Her still-damp hair hung loosely about her face, smelling like the flowery shampoo that Allura used in it.

She fell asleep wondering if the two of them smelled the same now. The though warmed her.

There were no drills that night. Everyone slept until morning.

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "Tenenbaum" by The Paper Kites


End file.
